The habit of frivolous spending is so deeply set in the culture of the Ontario government that it beggars the imagination how it might ever be dug out and eliminated. Earlier this week the Premier herself was denouncing the head of the Pan American Games for carelessly charging a cup of coffee to his expense account. No kidding. Today it’s revealed that the Tourism and Sports Ministry has given half a million dollars to Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment to help stage the 2016 NBA All-Star Game. This reckless giveaway makes people gag. The enormously privileged and wealthy MLSE taking $500,000 from a province that hardly knows where the next nickel is coming from is grotesque. The sense of entitlement that the never-ending stream of tax dollars has created in government is an insult — and no small threat — to democracy itself. The bureaucrats figure the government will never go broke. It may chase you into the poor house but it will get what you’ve got before you slam the door. Can anyone see what the voters want above everything? The City of Toronto endures living with a mayor who is uncultured, inarticulate and hopelessly confused about many things. But Mr. Ford’s popularity defies his behavior because he is trusted by hundreds of thousands of people to be careful with their money.
